Worcester, Mass. - Seniors Joelle Neilson and Jerome Rudolph and Sophomore Rachel Pena all took home first-place nods in their respective events on the first day of the Patriot League Outdoor Track & Field Championships being held at Holy Cross in Worcester, Mass.

Neilson took the long jump competition with a school record and ECAC qualifying leap of 5.89 meters, while Rudolph sped through the 100-meter dash at a time of 10.59 seconds. Pena took the hammer throw with a distance of 55.08 meters.

The Leopards' women's squad currently sits in third place overall, while the men occupy sixth place in the standings. Helping the women to that third place spot is senior Stephanie Hazlett, who currently sits in fourth place in the heptathlon with an overall score of 2,688 points.

Additionally for the Leopard women, junior Gwen Steckel finished just four spots behind Pena in hammer throw with a personal-best distance of 50.26 meters, good enough for fifth place. Sophomore Elise Buffinton took third place in the pole vault with a height of 3.7 meters, while her teammates, freshmen Claire Murphy and junior Brooke Kohler, finished seventh and eighth respectively with 3.4 meter and 3.25 meter marks.

Senior Lauren Kelly took fifth place in the 10,000 meter run with a time of 37:17.37, while sophomore Allyx Hunsberger nailed the fourth spot in the javelin throw with a mark of 41.27 meters.

On the men's side along with Rudolph, junior Nick Carboni currently sits in eighth place in the decathlon with an overall score of 3,014 points. Senior Nick Henderson notched a third-place finish in the pole vault with a height of 4.65 meters.

Continuing with the Leopard men, sophomore Mac Maguire took sixth place in the hammer throw with a personal-best distance of 52.34 meters, while senior Nick DeRosa finished five spots behind Rudolph in the 100-meter dash with a time of 11.00 seconds.

In the preliminaries of the 200 meter dash, Leopard men took the top three positions as DeRosa, Rudolph, and junior Nick Hepp finished in first, second, and third respectively with times of 21.72, 21.81, and 22.06 seconds.

Rounding up the day, senior Josh Sadlock finished in the eighth position in the 10,000 meter run with an IC4A qualifying and personal best time of 31:05.23, while freshmen Kevin Seery took sixth place in the javelin throw with a distance of 54.51 meters.

The Leopards continue competition tomorrow at the Patriot League Championships, beginning at 10:15 a.m.

Lafayette Athletics, as a partner in the mission of the College, provides and incredibly effective
learning experience for student-athletes through competitive NCAA Division I
athletics. Lafayette sponsors 23 varsity sports with more than 600 student-athletes.